Open Hardware/Modding: Home Assistant, Raspberry Pi, and More

posted by Roy Schestowitz on Jul 25, 2026

• LWN ☛ Home Assistant Device Database public preview

  The Open Home Foundation, which governs the Home Assistant home-automation project, has announced the "public preview" of its Device Database: [...]

• CNX Software ☛ CirkitScape Top HAT adds extra GPIOs, RS-485, 3-channel ADC, four USB 2.0 ports to Raspberry Pi SBCs

  CirkitScape Top HAT (also written as TopHAT) is a multi-function expansion board for the Raspberry Pi that adds 16 extra GPIOs through an I2C expander, an RS-485 header, a 3-channel, 12-bit ADC, and four extra USB 2.0 ports through a USB hub. The company told us it’s designed to “make prototyping, sensing, automation, and real-world Raspberry Pi builds cleaner and easier without stacking as many separate add-ons”. A Top HAT Sensor Kit is also offered with a few sensors for environmental monitoring builds.

• Linux Gizmos ☛ RealSense D585 Pro combines stereo vision, dual IR projectors, and edge processing

  The RealSense D585 Pro is a stereo depth camera built around the company’s new Gen 5 vision processor. It combines a 120 × 100-degree field of view, global-shutter sensors, dual infrared projectors, an integrated IMU, and on-device processing for robotics and industrial-vision systems.

• Hackaday ☛ Hands-Free Mouse Uses Eyes And Muscles Instead

  The build is based on the Neuro PlayGround Lite, a board built for physiological signal acquisition in the Feather form factor. It’s hooked up to an IMU sensor—both a MPU6050 or BMI270 work—which tracks head movements to allow the cursor to be panned around the screen. Other biological signals are then used to activate other standard mouse functions. Clenching the jaw fires off a left click, while a triple blink fires a right click. Clicking and dragging is achieved by a double-blink. The jaw muscles are sensed via EMG signals picked up with gel electrodes on the skin, while the blinks are detected via EOG signals via the same contact points.

• Nick Moore ☛ CCCP: the Computer Controlled Camera Project

  This is a project to get a camera and lens controlled directly from software. There are various ways to do this, including remote control of a DSLR or mirrorless camera, but in this case I’m just trying to control the camera hardware directly, as a learning experience if nothing else.

• Joshua Blais ☛ Building a Ferricy Keyboard

  For 6 years or so, I have been down the custom, split, ergonomic keyboard rabbit hole. And, since running a few different boards, I have found what I like and dislike in a board - to the point that it sounded like a good idea to build one that ticked all the boxes of preferences - 34 keys, MX switches, wired (more reliable than battery and stops the need to charge occasionally). I had my eye on a few, and decided on the Ferricy. This will be a bit of a build log as to my findings, the parts list, and how it all came together.